On the morning after the reelection of President Obama
American Christians of a conservative-to-far-right bent typified by the
leadership of the evangelical establishment and the Roman Catholic bishops have
to admit that along with the Republican Party they have just been resoundingly
repudiated.
Since I was one of the minor nepotistic sidekick architects
of the rise of the religious right in the 1970s-80s along with my late
evangelist father Francis Schaeffer (before I changed my mind and
fled as I describe in my book Crazy
For God) maybe I'm the right person to ask: What is the future of a
politicized "Christianity" deeply infected by the politics of hate,
intolerance, homophobia, xenophobia, victimhood, racism and willful delusion?
Bluntly -- will it be Fox News or Jesus?
Will the face that American Christianity presents to the
world be that of Franklin Graham hunkered down with Glenn Beck, the Koch
brothers promoting oligarchy and conspiracy theories and the likes of Dinesh
D'Souza spouting vicious lies; or will Christians rediscover Christianity?
For now the "face" of Christianity in America is
Franklin Graham who sold his father's reputation down the river for political
gain. It's the homophobic anti-marriage equality editors of Christianity
Today magazine. It's Ralph Reed, who narrowly escaped a downfall after the
Abramoff/casino/lobbying scandal and who reemerged from whatever rock he lives
under to "organize" the evangelical vote in return for whatever fees
he managed to skim from the budget the Republicans running the Romney campaign
gave him. It's the pedophile-codling Roman Catholic bishops trying to equate
religious freedom with withholding insurance coverage for contraceptives from
American women.
Christians who care about our country and our faith have a
choice: Circle the wagons tighter, deny reality further, hate more, or admit
that once again -- as with the race issues of the 1940s through the 1960s -- that
most conservative religious Americans have missed the boat of progress, hope
and inclusion.
The Republican Party thought it could disrespect women,
gays, Latinos, black people, union workers, single moms, minorities of all
backgrounds and young people and yet somehow win an election. Do sane
evangelicals and Roman Catholics of a reasonable disposition -- and there are
many -- want to make the same mistake? Do we Christians really want the future
of American Christianity permanently hijacked by the most putrid collection of
reactionary delusional bigots since Jim Crow?
The circle-the-wagons mentality of paranoia tinged with
racism that has typified the -- NOW FAILED -- anti-President Obama crusade has
so infected large swathes of American religion that it's an open question
whether the hate-your-brother-mongers have permanently discredited religion.
This is the time for religious leaders in America to humble themselves and to
become once again part of our democracy rather than reacting to it while crying
doom.
The Republican Party may or may not rise to the occasion and
change. But there's no reason that Christians can't distance ourselves from a
political movement dedicated to willful ignorance. It's time to put following
Jesus ahead of denying other people their basic human rights, their basic
humanity and trying to win elections even when it costs your soul.
Frank Schaeffer is
a writer and author of Crazy
for God: How I Grew Up as One of the Elect, Helped Found the Religious Right,
and Lived to Take All (or Almost All) of It Back. To book Frank to speak
at your college, church or group please contact Frank HERE
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